One Progressive’s View: The Conservative’s Mindset-Mitwitt IV, the NAACP Convention

I bet you all were thinking that I was going to start this article by criticizing Mitt Romney. On the contrary, I will commend him for having the courage to show up at the NAACP convention in Texas to address the audience last July 11th. I was surprised; I did not think that he had the conjones to face such an audience. Courage is a quality that when I find it in a man or woman, covers a multitude of sins, and Mitt has plenty of them (sins). I criticize the audience for booing the man; we should all treat everyone in a cordial way as we wish to be treated. This applies to the rightwinger as well!

People to left of me say that Mitt was not there so much to address the obviously pro-Obama, African American audience as to show undecideds and independents that he is no George Wallace. I would not say that, but I do think that he should fire his handlers. Who sent him into the lion’s den so poorly prepared? What I was looking for from him rather than bashing Obama is his alternative that would address the concerns of our community. More of the standard GOP rhetoric he has been using in the campaign trail is not good enough. When 97% of the audience is pro-Obama, you do not go in to this group using the term “Obamacare” in the place of the Affordable Care Act. This was a simple, glaring and obvious oversight. Romney is simply not clever enough to have a devious backdoor agenda for his reason to address the convention. He is consistently out of touch regardless of the audience that he addresses. Why should it be any different here? It is just that the nature of the audience he was to address this time required a bit more preplanning.

The political right continues to irritate me with claims that Romney spoke as he did to the convention to avoid pandering. But, Romney is a natural panderer, just look at his primary campaign tactics. It is not pandering to do your homework and take the time to make your position relevant to the audience to whom you are speaking. Then the right comes up with this insane perspective that the President is taking black audiences for granted by not making an appearance. That is also going nowhere. We, as a group, are for the most part allied with the President and I want him to spend his time working those states and constituencies that are on the margins. So, if Mr. Obama showed up he would be accused of pandering to the black community and when he doesn’t he is taking them for granted? Why would Mitt Romney spend a lot of time in Utah, for example? As usual, the rightwinger’s reasoning is ‘dead on arrival’.

Mr. Romney is not very engaging and will have trouble in the debates when he will be challenged by something other than friendly fire. While the GOP thinks that they can buy the election, a ham handed performance by their standard bearer could make things more difficult. For the sake of Republicans and conservatives they had better hope that Romney can ‘up his game’ soon.

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Leslie Mccowen

6 years agofrom Cape Cod, USA

Beautiful. I so agree. I think they are hanging on to something that is already gone. Fighting to the death for their old way, which they can't even see has destroyed everything.

Our planet is in trouble--we must change. People are suffering. We must change. The America on paper is not the America in practice. We see through it!

And no amount of old-time blathering about freedom and greatness blah blah blah is going to change that.

Talk is cheap. The price of living is high. Stop talking and do something!-----We see through it all!

"banks got bailed out, we got sold out"....anyone still representing the banks, and characterizing uber wealthy people as victims, is out of touch, and not living in reality.

IMO

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

LMC, No, Mitt has shown by his behavior that he cannot engage with anyone not having “blue blood”. That is not the kind of man I want to ‘have my back”. I have a lot of family in the Ogden, Utah area and traveling there back and forth over a lifetime, I am familiar with the Mormons and how they did business. Until the 1970’s, blacks were considered not viable within their faith. But of course an angel on high told them that the doors of the church needed to be open to everyone. I think that this was not so much revelation as PC as the state of Utah was growing and the church could no longer afford the provincial image. How much of all that is a part of the Romney subconscious?

They say that the GOP has a ‘Southern strategy”, this is true, but they have a “Northern Strategy” as well, which you touched upon. Tell all those ‘hard working white people” that the reason that they cannot get ahead is that all the minorities are on the dole and sucking up their tax money. The real reason why we have all been screwed is a truth that would incriminate the GOP. People do not realize that the average American family lost 30 to 40 percent of their net worth after this last meltdown and that has nothing to do with poor people on the welfare rolls. The intrinsic resentment and racism by these groups allow them to embrace the most obvious of lies and misconception.

These people scream socialism and do not know the meaning of the word. The GOP are masters of subterfuge. We are all down here fighting over the same crumbs. As it is said, ‘only fools fight in a burning house’. It is, as you say, very ugly. It is interesting how those that lounge around in a velvet hammock could have so little consideration for the people struggling to survive. It is time to get that lumbering elephant and its followers out of Washington, for good.

Leslie Mccowen

6 years agofrom Cape Cod, USA

I watched Mitt hand the gvr gavel over to Deval Patrick, a black man. It looked very uncomfortable. I would venture that Mitt doesn't know very many black people. Belmont is a very "white" area.....as was this place when I moved here in 85. 2 or 3 black dudes in 4 towns! And the one in the uppermost town was called McGilla Gorilla behind his back. I think Mitt is going for the same demographic Hilary was...the "hard-working white people". They would like to see him stand up to those "food-stamp and welfare people", as the media and Fox likes to portray it...taking all "their" hard-earned money....even if they're collecting SS, and on medicare.

Along with all that ACORN, Black Panther crap they spew still...as if that were any match for centuries of oppression and dirty dealings.

It's really ugly what he's doing, and I really hope he goes down for it.

And hey--any of you people in Congress who don't like Obamacare can give up YOUR tax-payer funded healthcare right now.

Or, do you like collecting welfare?

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

Hi, Jim, what’s shaking? The positive effect that you speak of has a negative consequence of his not having any message, no solutions and really no purpose in addressing the conference. Just being against Obama is not a message. I have seen his 59 points as to how he is going to improve the economy, by God, Woodrow Wilson only had 14! Merely being anti-Obama will win over your base but we as a group and most independents need something more substantive. When you go to the NAACP conference you need to be prepared to tell everyone why they should elect you president over the incumbent. Romney really did not get that across and as such was a failure. It a vision thing, examples and not ideological generalities was what was desired. GW Bush and Ronald Reagan did a better job when facing this group. Why did Romney fall flat?

Thanks for stopping by....

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

Stimulating discourse, guys, if I may weigh in…..

This Middle East thing has been going on for far too long, I am tired of it. Both sides want to annihilate the other, can we just avoid being in the crossfire? A point is well taken a vote for Romney-GOP would more likely lead to a confrontation with Iran. We are broke and with precious few resources, I am not going play the role of the “lone Ranger” when a posse would be more appropriate in dealing with international matters, the UN. Another entity that the rightwinger distrusts. If it is all about oil, and it is, who do you think has been standing in the way of serious research into alternate energy sources to make us all less dependent and vulnerable?It is always the ‘little people’ that do the dying and I for one am reluctant to trade blood for petroleum to benefit a gold plated few.

While Obama has made far too many concession to the right for my liking, he is realizing that they cannot be negotiated with and I doubt that he would go down the futile path of war with Iran without a stronger provocation. How do we stop anyone from becoming a nuclear power, unilaterally? If we could, how did Russia, China, Israel, Pakistan and India manage in spite of our influence?

I think that the Arab Spring nations do have the capacity to begin WWIII if the major powers foolishly allow themselves into entangled alliances with one side or the other. I wasn’t much of a spark that led to WWI.

“Romney will seek to build a constructive relationship with China on the basis of mutual respect, while also making clear that the United States will no longer tolerate Chinese practices that unfairly benefit their economy at the expense of ours. As president, Romney will take unilateral action and also partner with other nations affected by China’s refusal to participate responsibly in the global economy”

Michele, if Romney would do what you said in the paragraph, ok. We are walking on egg shells here and we need to be careful

WD. You may well be right about both parties being corrupt, it is just in my opinion that my opponent does not even bother concealing the fact that you were created as a commodity to be screwed, as expendable as cottage cheese to be discarded once the package is empty.

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

WD, nice to hear from you, how is everything going in the Sunshine State these days?

Sorry you missed the speech, but it is all over the web, along with plenty of commentary. It is like Biden said ‘ you gotta go home from the dance with the one that brought you”. Romney is the GOP’s blind date, the skeletons in his closet we have not even begun to open between now and Election Day. Good thing to keep your C-note in your pocket.

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

Hi, Michele, your comments and readership are most welcome. It is like you say ‘back and forth’, but that is good. True, most of Romney’s positions are parroted out from the rightwinger’s playbook. China is not a banana republic and has its hands deep into our pockets. Saber rattling is not going to change that. If China calls in all of those IOU’s, we are all in trouble. We are not in a position militarily, politically nor economically to throw our weight around the way we did at one time. Diplomacy and compromise are the only answers, the one answer that is repulsive to the rightwinger at his core. He represents their side of the ’military solution’ comparable to the situation during the Cold War. Was it not Romney that talks about Russia as such a threat, showing that he knows nothing about the current international climate, let alone our place in it? Romney is an empty suit, a simple alternative to Obama, Mickey Mouse would do for them in a pinch. He is pliant enough to do what ever it is that his well heeled constituents want, first of all because he is weak and second, he is one of them.

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

Hi, LMC, thanks for dropping by. In response to your statement “I think that you underestimate his deviousness”, unfortunately I may have to concur, but hoped that he would be better. Since he had nothing informative to say to what may be considered something less than fawning, adoring fans, he may have set himself up for the boos to show his base that he means business even under the pressure of adversity. I err in thinking that a leopard could change its spots, or should I say ‘polecat’

AUTHOR

Credence2

6 years agofrom Florida (Space Coast)

Hello, HS, thanks for reading and commenting. I would have just as soon wish that Romney stay home if he is not going to talk to attendees instead of talk at them. I would have liked to have given Romney the benefit of the doubt, but by now, I should know better. This rightwing feedback loop that he is locked into will prove fatal politically

FitnezzJim

6 years agofrom Fredericksburg, Virginia

Romney's address to the NAACP did have one positive side effect. It left the impression that he will seek to discourage the newscasting spin that occurs when a message is tailored to a specific audience. That sort of spin almost always leaves us with the impression that, no matter who the candidate is, they are weasel-wording their message in order to persuade folks to hear what has not been said. Sticking to message is something a natural leader does that a natural politician won't do.

Leslie Mccowen

6 years agofrom Cape Cod, USA

Iran wants to destroy Zionism. It's not the same thing. "This Zionist regime should be wiped from the pages of history"

Why does Israel want to bomb Iran? PNAC: Take-Over of the Middle East. Land, resources and power. And the subjugation of people under them. Zionist agenda, not Israel as a people.

Israeli's are protesting, but we never see it. Mexico had huge protest....where was the news?

People do NOT like power-mongers and thiefs! No matter what name they go under.

WD Curry 111

6 years agofrom Space Coast

Arab Springers do not have the capacity? That's like saying Lithuania didn't have the capacity to start WW1. Besides, I only pointed out that it is a volatile situation.

UN working with USA? What about Russia and China?

Am I not communicating well? Sure some in Israel and the USA want to bomb Iran, but what did I say about it? Iran wants to destroy Israel. I did not offer an opposing point of view, or even an opinion. I just stated the fact. I heard the man with my own ears

WD Curry 111

6 years agofrom Space Coast

Arab Springers do not have the capacity? That's like saying Lithuania didn't have the capacity to start WW1. Besides, I only pointed out that it is a volatile situation.

UN working with USA? What about Russia and China?

Am I not communicating well? Sure Israel and Iran want to bomb Iran, but what did I say about it? Iran wants to destroy Israel. I did not offer an opposing point of view, or even an opinion. I just stated the fact. I heard the man with my own ears.

WD Curry 111

6 years agofrom Space Coast

I am an Independent (staunch). Suffice it to say, I am not enamored with either party. I suspect both parties are getting corporate money from the same sources, like Citigroup. The Saudis Own 48% of Citigroup. Do you think they have other shareholders in their pocket? When it comes to disclosure, that corporation is treated as an American individual by the law thanks to the Supreme Court.

In case you miss the drift . . . foreign influence.

Forget Democrats and Republicans. i refuse to vote for them. They have both proven time and time again that they are incompetent, corrupt, narrow minded, self serving, riding the gravy train . . .

Don't give me two lousy choices and call me a free man.

Michele Travis

6 years agofrom U.S.A. Ohio

WD Curry 111 the countries in the Arab Spring don't have the capacity to start WWIII. Also, the United Nations and the United States are working together on this one, so this probably will not start WWIII, at least not for now. I still agree with lovemychris. On both Iran and Israel.

Michele Travis

6 years agofrom U.S.A. Ohio

And yes, Israel also wants to bomb Iran. It is a two way street. Romney has no idea how to handle anything. He is an idiot.

Michele Travis

6 years agofrom U.S.A. Ohio

No, I don't think you are advocating any of that. And yes those guys are crazy. The entire world is a mess. This answer I copied an pasted from another hub, but it has more detail, and a link where you can find more information.

There are a few things that bother me about Mitt Romney here is just one of them

Romney will seek to build a constructive relationship with China on the basis of mutual respect, while also making clear that the United States will no longer tolerate Chinese practices that unfairly benefit their economy at the expense of ours. As president, Romney will take unilateral action and also partner with other nations affected by China’s refusal to participate responsibly in the global economy.

This bothers me, because China has been sending information about building nuclear bombs to Iran. If Iran tries to bomb Israel, which is something Iran really wants to do, it could cause WWIII. I do not think Mitt Romney knows enough about how to relate to other governments around the world, to be a good President. I think he only wants to be President out of pride. I hope I am wrong.

Leslie Mccowen

6 years agofrom Cape Cod, USA

A vote for Romney is a vote for war with Iran...and your kids will fight and die there......for what? And for whom?

Of course, there are articles out there that says Obama is planning to bomb too, just after the election.

AIPAC needs to GO. Register as a foreign lobby and get out of our gvt!

WD Curry 111

6 years agofrom Space Coast

Excuse me. Do not get me wrong, I am not advocating war with Iran. Whether we bomb, or Isreal bombs, there will be bombs. Don't you have any "Persian" friends who are exiled in your town? Those guys running Iran are crazy and they have an agenda. Then, you have all of these Arab Spring "democracies" . . . look out . . . even a capable leader can't handle this mess well. Exciting times!

Michele Travis

6 years agofrom U.S.A. Ohio

lovemychris That is true also. But, they both want to bomb each other. And as for Romney saying he would do it, you are right, that is what people should be worried about. And yes, you are very correct, there are a lot more things we should be worried about. Romney cares nothing about the poor, and there are a lot of poor people in the United States today. That is only one of them.

WD Curry 111

6 years agofrom Space Coast

Man, I'm sorry I missed it! I have to find a video. I got the gist of it from what you said, though. News is better in print. Shouldn't they call it "Pelosi" care?

Mitt Romney? What are they thinking? How can they keep a straight face at Fox News?

Obama is a lot more popular with the average American than anyone gives him credit. Independents don't even have a long shot, "no way in hell" candidate since Roemer suspended his campaign. Just in time, too. I was just about to send my $100. I took my lady out for dinner instead.

And Romney has said he would do it...that's what people should be worried about.

Among MANY other things.

Michele Travis

6 years agofrom U.S.A. Ohio

This is a very good hub, and will probably be one of those that goes back and forth. One of my problems with Romney is lack of experience with foreign governments. What would happen if he makes China angry? We know he has sent jobs there. If he takes jobs back, as he promised what will China do? China has connections to Iran. China has been helping Iran with building and testing nuclear bombs.. Iran wants to bomb Israel. We could see larger problems when it comes to foreign government problems, then simply problems in the U.S.A. Mitt Romney should not become president. The reason Romney wants to be president is pride. He seems to be buying the office of president. The rich want him to be president. He ( at least I think ) only cares about the rich. He has even said he does not care about the poor. There are so many poor people in this country and this man who wants to be president does not care at all about them!

Ok, I am going to shut up now.

Voted up.

Leslie Mccowen

6 years agofrom Cape Cod, USA

I think you under-estimate his deviousness. He went there to get booed, so he could tell his white audience: "See? these black people just want a hand-out, that's why they like Obama." He's a class A creep, imo, not a mis-handled politician.

Howard Schneider

6 years agofrom Parsippany, New Jersey

I believe Romney felt that he had to speak at the NAACP and it was a plus because the President did not speak there. I do feel that he knew it was a no-win situation so he pandered to his base. Doesn't this man know you win national elections in the middle with independents? Great Hub, Cred.

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